PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Tear it down or sink millions of dollars into renovations?
Those are the options being discussed as the City of Portland decides what to do with Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
A study released this week lays out 7 options for the 55-year-old coliseum with 3 basic ideas: do nothing, and the building won’t last long; demolish it for $14 million; or renovate and transform it into something new.
“We are sitting on a really great building that can be a centerpiece for a restored Rose Quarter and Convention Center area,” Friends of Memorial Coliseum co-chair Stuart Emmons said. “It’s just a gem, we are so lucky to have the building in Portland.”
The Portland City Council will ultimately decide the fate of the historic building. But according to Emmons, he and others with Friends of Memorial Coliseum won’t allow the structure to be compromised without a fight.
“Demolishing a building that can be such an asset to our city, and is so tied to the culture of our city, is just haywire,” he said. “It doesn’t stand for what Portland is all about.”
But demolition isn’t the only option. A dramatic makeover for Veterans Memorial Coliseum could include an indoor track, a party deck or transforming it into an open-air arena.
Making the coliseum an open-air arena, however, would draw fewer events to the venue every year. An indoor track would allow 112 events a year, but would force the Portland Winterhawks to be booted from the facility.
“This building was designed for hockey and for basketball,” Emmons commented. “I think it’s just dead wrong. It’s kind of an insult to the original idea.”
A $35 million restoration option for essential repairs could still end up costing the facility money every year. Restoration efforts could go all the way up to $91 million to create enhancements like a party deck, new concessions and a wireless network.
“We ought to get as much restoration dollars into this building as possible,” Emmons said.
Pictures of the new design ideas by a team of consultants were released on Monday. They began looking at the building last fall, and their report lays out the opportunities and challenges faced in any of the proposed plans.
The report notes the coliseum has hosted more than 5000 events over 55 years and still averages about 117 events per year.
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